Sectional balancing toy

ABSTRACT

A SET OF ELONGATED BODY MEMBERS INCLUDING A PRIMARY MEMBER WHICH IS ROCKABLE IN A VERTICLE PLANE ABOUT A FULCRUM. THE SET ALSO INCLUDES ADDITIONAL BODY MEMBERS WHICH ARE RIGIDLY BUT SEPARABLY CONNECTABLE TO THE PRIMARY MEMBER AND TO ONE ANOTHER TO PROVIDE A UNITARY ROCKABLE ASSEMBLY WHICH HAS ITS CENTER OF GRAVITY DISPOSED BELOW THE FULCRUM.

0ct.'19, 1971 E. SEGUIN ETAL 3,613,300

, SECTIONAL BALANCING TOY Filed May 22, 1969 INVENTORS [fives/ f6 0/ 2Wax Mme??? BY v ATTORNEYS United States Patent Office 3,613,300SECTIONAL BALANCING TOY Ernest Seguin, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and MaxWhiteman, 5450 King Edward Ave., Montreal, Quebec,

Canada; said Seguin assignor to said Whiteman Filed May 22, 1969, Ser.No. 826,903 Int. Cl. A6311 13/12 U.S. Cl. 46131 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A set of elongated body members including a primary memberwhich is rockable in a vertical plane about a fulcrum. The set alsoincludes additional body members which are rigidly but separablyconnectable to the primary member and to one another to provide aunitary rockable assembly which has its center of gravity disposed belowthe fulcrum.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in balancing toysof the general type wherein the toy is rockable in a vertical planeabout a fulcrum and has its center of gravity disposed below thefulcrum, so that the toy is dynamically stable notwithstanding itsapparent instability and the rocking motion to which it is subjected.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a novel and a highlyentertaining balancing toy of this type which comprises a set ofelongated body members separably connected together. One of these is aprimary member which is rockable about a fulcrum, while one or moreadditional members are connectable to the primary member and to oneanother so as to provide a unitary rockable assembly. As such, thestructural composition and arrangement of the assembly may be widelyvaried by connecting together the various members in various ways, andthe benefits of entertainment and fascination derived from the toy arematerially enchanced.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sectional balancing toywherein the elongated body members may conveniently assume the form ofsimulated acrobats, realistically connected to one another in theperformance of the balancing act.

The balancing toy of the invention is simple in construction, highlyentertaining, durable and lends itself to economical manufacture.

With the foregoing more important objects and features in view and suchother objects and features as may become apparent as this specificationproceeds, the invention will be understood from the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, whereinlike characters of reference are used to designate like parts andwherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view showing one arrangement of thesectional balancing toy of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view, taken substantially in the planeof the line 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the primary bodymember;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the rear end or foot portionof the secondary and tertiary members;

FIG. 5 is an end elevational view of the foot portion shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a cross bar which may be used in theassembly;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing the cross barconnected to the foot portion of the secondary member;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing the cross barconnected to the foot portion by a flexible connection; and

3,613,300 Patented Oct. 19, 1971 FIG. 9 is a fragmentary sideelevational view showing a tertiary member connected to the cross bar onthe foot portion of a secondary member.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, one arrangement ofthe sectional balancing toy of the invention is shown in FIG. 1. The toycomprises a set of elongated members 10, 12, 14 which may convenientlybe in the form of simulated acrobats, although it is to be understoodthat these members may have any other configuration, human, animal orotherwise, or they may simply have the form of elongated blocks. Also,while the members may be relatively flat or thin in the transversedirection, they also may have a substantial third dimensioncorresponding to the human or animal form which they represent.

In any event, the member 10 may be regarded as the primary member in theset, and one end portion thereof, corresponding to the foot of thefigure, is formed with a notch 15 for seating on a fulcrum 16 which isprovided on a suitable support 17. The latter may be, for example, theedge portion of a table top, or the like, on which the fulcrum 16 ispositioned, or a special support 17 embodying the fulcrum 16 may beprovided as a component of the toy. Alternatively, the fulcrum 16 assuch may be omitted and the foot of the figure may have its toe turndownwardly to engage the support 17 and thus provide a fulcrum aboutwhich the member 10 may rock in a vertical plane.

The elongated member 10 extends away from the fulcrum 16 in onedirection which, merely for purposes of orientation may be referred toherein as that the member 10 extends forwardly from the fulcrum. Theforward or head portion of the primary member 10 is provided with arectangular notch 18 which, as shown in FIG. 3, is located at the backof the neck of the figure. The notch 18 is intended to removably receivea bar 19 of a rectangular cross-section, which bar is secured to andheld by a bifurcated front portion or hands 20 of the member 12.

The member 12, which may be referred to as the secondary member of theset, extends downwardly and rearwardly from the primary member 10, belowthe support 17, and the rear end or foot portion 21 of the member 12projects rearwardly beyond the fulcrum 16, substantially as shown inFIG. 1. As will be apparent from the foregoing, the secondary member 12is connected to the primary member 10 by inserting the bar 19 of themember 12 into the notch 18 of the member 10, and since the notch iscomplemental to the rectangular cross-section of the bar, the bar cannotturn or rotate in the notch. Thus, the member 12 is separably butrigidly connected to the member 10, in the sense that the member 12 isheld at a fixed angular relationship to the member 10 and the center ofgravity of the two assembled members is disposed below the fulcrum 16.This permits the assembly to rock in a vertical plane about the fulcrumas indicated by the arrow 22, even if additional members such as themember 14 are included in the assembly, as will be presently explained.

The rear end or foot portion 21 of the secondary member 12 is formed toprovide a substantially cylindrical toe portion 23 which is upturned soas to form a groove 24, and an eye 25 is provided at the bottom of thetoe portion 23, as is best shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The member 14, whichmay be referred to as the tertiary member of the set, is similar to thesecondary member 12, but the front end or hand portion 26 of the member14 is in the form of a downturned hook which engages around the toeportion 23 of the member 12, extending into the groove 24, whereby toseparably connect the member 14 to the member 12. Also, the hand portion26 of the member 14 is provided at its underside with a projection 27which abuts the eye 25 of the member 12 when the portion 26 is engagedwith the portion 23, as will be apparent from FIG. 1. Thus, the tertiarymember 14 separaby but rigidly connected to the secondary member 12, theabutment of the projection 27 with the eye 25 serving to support the member 14 at a fixed angular relation to the member 12 while the member 14extends rearwardly from the member 12, substantially as shown.

When the tertiary member 14 is added to the secondary member 12, theassembly will assume a balanced rest position with the center of gravityof the assembly still disposed below the fulcrum 16, and the assemblywill be rockable about the fulcrum as at 22, as already explained. Thefoot portion 21 of the tertiary member 14 is the same as that of thesecondary member 12 and, if desired, the assembly may be extendedfurther rearwardly by adding one or more members such as the member 14to the member 14 shown in FIG. 1.

Various other modifications are possible by employment of a cross bar 28shown in FIG. 6. This cross bar is of a slender, substantiallycylindrical form and its midportion is provided with a suspension loop29 which may be removably applied to the groove 24 in the foot portion21, as for example of the secondary member 12, as shown in FIG. 7. Whenso applied, the cross bar 28 abuts the eye 25 of the foot portion, and apair of tertiary members 14 may then be applied to the opposite endportions of the cross bar by engaging the hand portions 26 of themembers 14- with the end portions of the bar. These end portions of thebar are provided with depending eyes 30, similar to the eye 25, forabutment by the projections 27 of the hand portions 26, thus supportingthe members 14 on the cross bar 28 in proper angular relation to themember 12. Since in this instance two of the teritary members 1-4 areused on the respective opposite sides of the secondary member 12, thebar 28 may be provided with annular shoulders 31 to facilitate equallateral spacing of the two members 14 from the member 12. FIG. 9 showsthe members 14 connected to the member 12 by the cross bar 28 and itwill be understood that while in the instance the bar 28 is supported bythe secondary member 12, it may also be supported by the tertiary member14 as the latter is shown in FIG. 1, in which event additional members14 may be connected in a pair to the cross bar.

FIG. 8 shows another modification wherein the cross bar 28 is notrigidly connected to the foot portion 21 but rather, it is suspendedtherefrom by a flexible element 32 which may be an elastic band or alength of cord, passing through the suspension loop 29 of the cross barand through the eye 25 of the foot portion 21, A pair of the members 14may be applied to the cross bar 28 as already described and the crossbar with these members thereon may rotate in a horizonal plane whilebeing suspended from the foot portion 21 of the next proceeding member.

In all instances the center of gravity of the assembly lies below thefulcrum 16 and the assembly is thus dynamically stable, notwithstandingits apparent instability and its rocking movement about the fulcrum.

What we claim is:

1. A sectional balancing toy comprising a set of elongated body membersincluding a primary member having a fulcrum at one end thereof, saidprimary member extending forwardly from the fulcrum and being rockableabout the fulcrum in a vertical plane, a secondary member having a frontend rigidly but separably connected to the forward end portion of saidprimary member, said secondary member extending downwardly andrearwardly from the primary member with its rear end portion projectingrearwardly beyond and substantially below the fulcrum, the center ofgravity of said set of body members lying below said fulcrum, andquickly separable means connecting the secondary member to the primarymemher, said means comprising a flat-sided bar fixed transversely to thefront end of said secondary member, the forward end portion of saidprimary member being provided with an upwardly open rectangular notchremovably but non-rotatably receiving said flat-sided bar therein,whereby the secondary member is held at a fixed angular relationship tothe primary member.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said set of body membersalso includes at least one tertiary body member having its front endrigidly but separably connected to the rear end of said secondary memberand extending rearwardly therefrom.

3. The device as defined in claim 2 together with means rigidly butseparably connecting the front end of said tertiary member to the rearend of said secondary member.

4. The device as defined in claim 3 wherein said means connecting saidtertiary member to said secondary member comprise an upturned toeportion provided at the rear end of the secondary member, a downturnedhook provided at the front end of the tertiary member, and mutuallyabutting projections provided at the underside of said toe portion andof said hook, whereby to hold the tertiary member at a fixed angularrelationship to the secondary member.

5. The device as defined in claim 1 together with a cross bar separablyconnected to the rear end of said secondary member and projectinglaterally to opposite sides thereof, said set of body members alsoincluding at least two tertiary members having front ends thereofrigidly but separably connected to said cross bar at opposite sides ofsaid secondary member and extending rearwardly therefrom.

6. The device as defined in claim 1 together with a cross bar separablysuspended from the rear end of said secondary member and rotatable in ahorizontal plane, said set of body members also including at least twotertiary members having front ends thereof rigidly but sep arablyconnected to opposite end portions of said cross bar.

References tilted UNITED STATES PATENTS 839,145 12/1906 Hoffman .a 461312,190,800 2/1940 Murphy 46131 2,551,668 5/1951 GOOSmann 46131 2,881,5604/1959 Dawson 46-131 LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner A. I. HEINZ,Assistant Examiner Us. or. xa. 46-22

